But It's Scary.

by Amanda Petersen

Growth is scary. At least most of the time. There is a desire to grow and a desire to have growth feel good and be natural. I just want to say if the process is still in one’s comfort zone it isn’t really growth. That might be classified with stretching. Growth means going beyond the comfortzone. Stretching is coming up to the edges and getting a feel for what growth my look like.

As a contemplative being committed to growing closer to God/Divine this would then mean that life involves some scary moments on a regular basis. This is to be expected. Growth is complicated. This is why staying in one’s comfort zone is so easy. To grow means putting oneself in a place never traveled, a willingness to not get it right and make changes that affect other people also. Why? Why go to this scary place? Because that is where deep Love is found, because life is a Divine gift to participate in, because like all living things we are wired for growth, because the world needs people willing to go to scary places for the sake of Love. There are many reasons to grow. Getting clear on the why is always important.

I am contemplating growth because I am in the midst of a growth spurt. As wonderful as Pathways of Grace is the space has become a bit small. In order for Pathways of Grace to grow that means I must be willing to grow. As with most growth I did some stretching first just to peek at the other side of the comfort line. Yet eventually I had to do the scary thing and decide if we are growing or not. As I stretched it all unfolded into growth and in August Pathways of Grace will be moving into a beautiful new space (yes it’s near where we are right now). I will share that journey with you in the next newsletter.

For now, contemplate the reality that in order to grow there needs to be a willingness to go into scary places. How does God fit into your fear? How does the Divine inspire your bravery? Support in this process is crucial. The groups that are beginning next week will all support you in this. Maybe the next scary thing is to commit to a workshop or group?